Shelters

WARTIME SHELTERS AT CARDIFF CASTLE

MAP

We visited the Cardiff Castle and walked through the shelters inside. Let's take a look at it...

THE CASTLE WALL SHELTERS

The shelters were built in 1939, during the outbreak of the Second World War. Britain was preparing for air attacks, Lorde Bute, the owner of the castle, was asked if he would allow people to use the large, thick, outer-walls of his place as bomb shelters.

Bute agreed, the walls were transformed into eight big shelters where hundreds of people would be accommodated. On the outside, wooden ramps were built to make easier an emergency entrance.

INDOORS

Inside, people would spend cold and uncomfortable nights waiting for the bombing to stop. Wartime is hard, and since there was the possibility of suffering a gas attack, masks and instructions where enabled.

For some, "safety and comfort" the shelters contained air-raid warden's post, a small canteen and a bay.

However, this was what all those persons would hear during their stay. Imagine their fear and living conditions...

AFTER WW2

TODAY

In 1947, John, the fifth Marquess inherited the castle when his father died. He sold Bute's lands and gave the castle and the surrounding park to the city on behalf of Cardiff people.As part of the handover ceremony, the family flag was taken down from the castle as part of the official hand-over ceremony.

Cardiff Castle today runs as a tourists attraction and is one of the most visited sites in the city.

The castle has been used for a variety of cultural and social events, including musical performances, such as the ones by Tom Jones, Green Day and the Stereophonics, with a capacity to accommodate over 10,000 people. During the 1960s and 1970s, the castle was the setting for a sequence of military tattoos.

Presentation done by:

Agustina Rivarola